Video Editor: Purnendu Pritam
There have been too many encounters happening in UP of late. The criminals who had once terrorised the public are now shivering with terror themselves. They are now begging the police to arrest them, saying: "Sir, there is a price on my head. Please arrest me or I will be killed."
Is this not what we have been told? Is this not the picture that the Yogi government has been painting in UP since the past few months? It is as if UP has shed it's dirty old clothes and donned a new avatar.
However, when you look at Unnao, you realise what a facade this entire new avatar is. Because BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar was accused of a crime as heineous as gangrape. Then why is it taking so long for you, Yogi ji, to take action? Weren’t you the one who said that there is no place for criminals in Uttar Pradesh?
But, we understand. When you are losing by-elections, lawmakers are writing letters, chaos has ensued in the state, it is natural to suffer from memory loss. Here, let us remind you what you had said:
Hooligans, mafias, criminals and convicts who have so far been protected by power are requested to leave Uttar Pradesh and go away. Because if they decide to stay back there are only two places available for them, and I don’t think anyone wants to go there.Yogi Adityanath, CM, Uttar Pradesh
The Victim Had Tried to Commit Suicide
The Unnao incident has shook the entire nation. One girl attempts suicide outside the chief minister's residence, alleging that she has been gangraped. A father struggling to get justice for his daughter dies in police custody. But the heart of the CM who talks about the rights of the weak does not wrench.
If your heart beats for humanity, does a cry for help not shake your core?
A Year of Imploring for Justice
It is nearly a year now that the victim and her family are awaiting justice. The UP police have not been able to even pen an FIR.
The walls in UP too have "beti bachao, beti padhao" (save the daughter, educate the daughter) graffiti on them. Yogi ji, you failed to save the father, you should at least save the daughter. Because looking at the smug smile on your MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar's face, it becomes hard for one to believe if justice is anywhere close.
He is the prime accused in the gangrape who does not have a trace of worry on his face. We sincerely hope that this is not a result of confidence in the fact that the Government is with him regardless of what he has done.
Please do something, Yogi ji, please say something. Give us assurance that there will be action and that justice will be delivered.
Political negotiations are necessary, especially when elections are round the corner. But please do not forget that during elections votes come from ordinary people. So please withdraw the support you have provided to the accused MLA and let law take its own course.
(Copy translated by Mekhala Saran)
(This piece was first published on Hindi Quint. Read the original story here.)
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